#love how I can safely be excited for prisoners throne without someone jumping down my throat about it

[deathsweetblossoms]

I need to talk about some Prisoner’s Throne related things

Oak is quite a heartbreaking character. He carries so much weight and expectation from his family to Be Happy for the sake of all they gave up for him. That, in and of itself, is a devastating thing to live up to. And he tries to!

Similarly, does anyone know who Oak truly is or what he wants? Has anyone ever asked? The only person he showed an ounce of his true self to seems to be Wren

The line about giving his sisters anything they ask for is just 🥺. When he smiles fondly at Oriana for fussing over him 🥺. Oak loves his family so much.

Oak feels like a mistake 😭😭😭

Jude and Cardan being playful, but also soft, is my ruination.

Cardan joking about being a snake, and Jude looking PAINED while he talks about it? OH MY GODDDD

Jude taking birth control kills the theories of her being pregnant but now I wonder if she WILL be pregnant by the end of the book? Thus freeing Oak from this burden of being Elfhame’s heir???? MAYBE???

Oak is so self sacrificing? So, truly, he’s doing every thing to help save Jude & Cardan and his family? The tryst with Lady Elaine, the lovers. Now I see that he had the mermaid lover to get information about the Undersea 😱

This was interesting - JUDE is the one that says the line about not planning to kick the bucket any time soon, which is interesting because it makes it sound like Cardan and Jude are okay ruling for an indeterminate amount of time? Right? Hmm..

Cardan being playful and sweet with Leander? Cardan being good with kids???? JUST —

[curls-cat]

Sugar/Spice; Snips/Snails

for @grimmtober day 1: Candy! Also on AO3 and ff.net under the same name. but I can’t link it if I want this to show up in the tags. :/ AU: Sabrina grows up in Ferryport Landing.

*

There’s a boy in the woods. Sabrina sees him, even if none of the grown-ups do. He’s bigger than she is, with curly gold hair like hers, wearing a big green hoodie. He keeps looking at her through the trees and grinning. There are fireflies around him, even during the daytime, even now that summer’s all the way over.

Sabrina knows better than to go outside herself. Mamma and Daddy and Granny all say it’s too dangerous, that she’s too little and sometimes people are mean and might hurt her. And even when people aren’t mean, the woods is really big, and she could get lost so easy. Mr. Canis could find her, but someone mean might find her first.

But there’s a boy in the woods. And there aren’t a lot of other kids in Ferryport Landing. Especially not ones she can talk to (in preschool there’s Bella and Natalie and Toby and Wendell, but only Wendell is allowed to be her friend. And everything else is secrets, secrets, secrets—don’t tell anyone about Mr. Canis, Sabrina, or about what being a Grimm means, or about why you’re extra excited to get to first grade and see Ms. Snow). And all Sabrina’s Halloween candy disappeared last night.

Sabrina wanted to be Alice in Wonderland for Halloween, but her parents said No and Granny said Politics and didn’t explain what that meant, so Sabrina was Stephanie from Lazy Town instead and had to wear an itchy pink wig the whole night and none of the grown-ups knew who she was supposed to be. And now all her candy’s gone and nobody believed her when she said she didn’t eat all of it.

So the next time the fireflies come out, when it’s just starting to get dark and the shadows from the woods reach all the way to the house, Sabrina follows them. They’re pretty, even though up close they’re too big to be lightning bugs, and they glow too bright. She didn’t really think they were bugs.

She follows them as they dance between the long shadows of the trees. She didn’t have time to put on her shoes before she left, so her socks are getting wet in the grass. It’s gross. They lead her right to the edge of the woods, and then they scatter.

Sabrina is, for a moment, alone in the gathering dark of the woods. Nearly all the leaves have fallen, and it’s gray and brown and so, so quiet. No birds or bugs. No Mamma or Daddy or Granny calling for her to come inside. She can see the house through the trees, and it looks warm and safe and like it’s calling her back.

“Scared?”

Sabrina spins around and pulls her hands up the way Ms. White taught her—you have to protect your face—and sees the boy, sitting in a tree a few feet above her. Up close, he’s different than she thought. Still a boy, still a kid like her, but older. Taller. And dirty. He’s holding her candy in his hand. She knows it’s hers because it’s still in her plastic jack-o-lantern with her initials on the bottom in her very own handwriting.

“I’m not scared of you,” she tells him.

He grins, flashes too-sharp teeth. “Sure. That’s why you jumped a mile high when I said something, little girl.”

“I’m not a little girl!” she says, even though she is, and she knows it. “I’m a big sister!” She balls her fists tighter. “And that’s my candy.”

“Finders keepers,” he says. He unwraps a pack of oreos and pops them in his mouth. His fingernails are too sharp, too.

“You’re rude,” she says, but she puts her fists down. He doesn’t seem mean, just… messy. And gross. And mean, but she said that already.

“So’re you,” he says, and hands her a pack of Starbursts.

Sabrina accepts her candy, unwraps it. Inside there’s two pink ones and an orange one. She wrinkles her nose and eats the orange one. She’s not supposed to have candy before dinner.

She’s also not supposed to talk to strangers. Especially not strangers who are ab-so-lute-ly Everafters.

“Why’d you take my candy?” She sits on the ground. Her socks are already dirty, might as well get mud on her overalls, too. The boy won’t care. He’s dirtier than she is.

“I was hungry,” he says. “I just told the pixies to get me food.”

Not fireflies. Pixies. Sabrina squints at him. “You’re not supposed to talk about magic.” She doesn’t know what a pixie is, but she knows for sure it’s magic.

“I thought this town was full of magic,” the boy says. “A ‘haven for the homeless,’ that’s what your ancestor said when he convinced all of us to follow him over here. Or a prison, if you listen to anybody else.”

“There’s people, too,” Sabrina informs him. “Lots of ‘em. Normal people. Boring people. I have twelve in my preschool class. And they’ve all got parents. Some have brothers and sisters, too.”

The boy looks suitably impressed. Then he wrinkles his nose. “Boring,” he tells her. “I was hoping this place would be fun. But it’s got rules too, huh?”

“Everywhere has rules,” Sabrina says. “My daddy says they’re to keep people safe.”

The boy snorts. “To keep you from having fun, more like.” He pops a Reese’s into his mouth.

Something occurs to Sabrina, then. “How’d you know about my an-cestor?” The new word feels strange on her tongue. She thinks it means like your grandpa, but extra.

The boy nods in the direction of the house. “I watched him build that place. Slowed him down, too. Plus I’ve been watching.”

“I know,” Sabrina says. “I saw you.”

“What’s your name?” he asks. “Other than Grimm. Your first name.”

“Sabrina,” she offers readily. “What’s yours?”

He tosses her another pack of Starbursts. “Puck.”

*

Sabrina brings Puck food for a few days. She likes keeping him secret. Everyone’s busy with the new baby, and Sabrina loves Daphne, sure, but babies are boring and she doesn’t know why all the grown-ups care so much about someone who can’t even do anything. She also feels a little left out, maybe, and it’s nice having someone who’s hers. They talk. He’s a prince, he says. He’s exiled, he says. He’s famous, he says. He’s the coolest. He doesn’t have to say that part. Sabrina thinks so, too.

They spend afternoons in the cool dark woods, and Puck takes her flying, because he’s not just too sharp, he’s also got wings, because he’s a fairy, which Sabrina has never met before. They share her Halloween candy. He turns into animals, and he listens to her tell him about preschool. She’s learning to read, a little. She can read the street sign for their road. Puck thinks reading and books are boring. She yells at him about it.

That’s the other thing about Puck. If she gets mad at him, he doesn’t tell her to stop throwing a tantrum or go to her room like her parents, and he doesn’t start crying or tattle to someone like the other kids at preschool. He yells back. And then they’re friends again.

*

Mr. Canis is the one who finds out. He follows her to the woods and says, “I wondered where all the caramels went.”

“This is Puck,” Sabrina says. If a grown-up did have to find them, she’s glad it was Mr. Canis. He’s not a regular grown-up, not the kind who tells her what to do and gets worried or talks down to her. He just talks, and listens. Sometimes he says weird stuff, but other than that, he’s almost like a regular person. “He was hungry.”

“I know who he is,” Mr. Canis says. ��I’ve been watching him.” He looks down at Sabrina. “What I didn’t know was that you knew him.”

“He took my Halloween candy,” Sabrina says. “Nobody listened.”

Mr. Canis doesn’t say anything. He looks Puck up and down. 

Puck stares right back at him, then, at long last, says, “Don’t get mad at her.”

“I am not angry,” Mr. Canis says. “You should come inside and meet the family.”

Puck wrinkles his nose. “I’m not going to move back inside. I’ve finally broken out of being civilized.”

“I am not asking you to,” Mr. Canis says. “But inside there is food that will not rot your teeth.”

“Everafters don’t get cavities.”

Mr. Canis laughs. It sounds like a dog barking. It always does. “I can assure you we do.” He shows Puck his own too-sharp teeth, points at a shiny silver spot in one of them. “I had this filled myself.”

Puck’s eyes go wide, and his hand comes up to his face. He gives Mr. Canis another long look. “What kind of food?”

“Weird food,” Sabrina informs him. “Granny’s cooking tonight.”

Puck thinks for a second, then shrugs. He grins at Sabrina. “I like weird.”

*

Puck keeps living in the woods. Sabrina has to tell a grown-up before she goes to see him, now. The grown-ups all have a long conversation after Mr. Canis tells them she’s been going in the woods to visit a Strange Boy (he’s not a strange boy, she tries to tell them, but nobody listens). After, her parents sit her down and have A Talk with her about Danger and how Not All Everafters Are Nice. She listens, even if she thinks they’re coming at it wrong. Puck isn’t nice. She doesn’t want him to be nice.

They grow.

*

At age nine, Sabrina runs out of the house, ignoring the sound of her dad shouting after her. This time, at least, she’s wearing shoes. She heads straight for Puck’s trash throne. The pixies greet her on the way, rising out of the shadows of another gathering dark, as they always do. She appreciates it, though she barely needs it, can find her way to Puck without any help.

“What’s Hanky yelling about?” Puck asks instead of greeting her. He’s sitting, as usual, on his porcelain throne atop a mountain of broken furniture.

Sabrina throws him a bag of fun size Milky Ways—it’s the family’s Halloween candy, and her mom’s going to be mad that she has to buy another bag, but Sabrina doesn’t care. She doesn’t care about anything and it’s not like they’ll even be here in a few weeks and her parents don’t care about what she wants, anyway, so why should she care about them?

Puck catches the candy, opens it, and pops one, fully wrapped, into his mouth. He spits the wrapper out onto the ground a few seconds later, covered in spit and melted chocolate. He does this a lot. Sabrina always calls him gross and makes a stink about it. Today all she can think about is how she’s not gonna be able to see this anymore in a few days, because—

Puck notices her silence. “What, Grimm? Finally seen sense about ‘the environment’?”

Sabrina isn’t sure she wanted him to notice. She thinks maybe she wanted him to act like everything was normal and maybe then she could pretend it really was, for a bit. But she sort of also wants someone to listen, someone she can yell at who won’t talk about safety. Someone who cares about what she wants, even if he pretends not to, instead of pretending to when they don’t, like her parents.

“We’re moving,” she says, and she keeps her voice flat, even, because if she doesn’t, she’s going to cry.

Puck stops chewing and stares at her. “You can’t. There needs to be a Grimm in Ferryport Landing.”

“Not all of us,” Sabrina says. “Granny’s staying. But Mom and Dad, and me, and Daphne… we’re leaving. Dad says town is ‘too dangerous.’”

“This is about the stupid ‘Scarlet Hand’ or whatever.” It’s not a question.

“Did they talk to you?” Sabrina asks.

“Nah,” Puck says. “Everyone knows I wouldn’t.”

“Yeah,” Sabrina says. Because they’re friends. He’s her best friend, better than Wendell, even, even though Wendell goes to school with her and they’re in soccer together and he gave her a valentine last year that he’d picked out especially for her, the only one in the pack with a lollipop and a sticker.

“I won’t join anything that I can’t be the leader of,” Puck adds, because he can’t just be honest, ever. That’s okay, though. Sabrina understands. Honesty is hard.

She sits down on the edge of the pool, feels rough concrete under her hands, looks at the murky water, the level dropped low enough that she can dangle her feet in and only the very bottoms of her shoes touch it as they sway back and forth.

“When?” Puck asks.

“By the end of the year,” Sabrina says. “Mom got a job, and Dad asked me if I wanted—” her breath hitches, half anger and half rage— “if I wanted to help him pick out an apartment. Like this was exciting.”

“You could run away,” Puck suggests.

Sabrina laughs without humor.

“Plenty of woods,” Puck says. “You don’t have to stay here. Hey, I know! You could go up to the asylum with the other crazy little girls!”

Sabrina halfheartedly throws a piece of concrete at him. It clatters down the side of his trash mountain nowhere near him and rolls to a stop nearly at her other hand, still resting on cracked cement.

“Mr. Canis would find me,” Sabrina says, at length. “And they’d just make me go, anyway.”

“How? The old lady can’t leave, and neither can he. Just run away again before one of your parents comes to get you.”

“And leave Daphne?”

The younger girl practically worships the both of them. Losing Puck is going to be hard enough for her, but losing Puck and Sabrina… It’ll break her heart. And there’s no question about bringing Daphne with them. 

For a long time, neither of them say anything. Sabrina had sort of been hoping Puck would have an answer. A real one, one that would work.

“You can visit,” he says at last. “They can’t keep you away forever.”

“Yeah,” she says. Because Mom had said that, too. Said that they could come back on weekends and over holidays, as long as Granny said things seemed safe.

She looks up at the boy she’s known for half her life, who’s been her best friend almost as long, who she’s going to stop being able to see soon. He’s been exactly the same the whole time she’s known him. When she sees him next, she’s going to be closer to his height. She might even outgrow him.

She knew it might happen. They don’t talk about it, but they both know. Someday, Sabrina’s going to have to be an adult, and Puck won’t. She’s not sure she wants to be an adult, but she doesn’t think she wants to be stuck, either. Doesn’t want to be powerless forever.

There’s nothing else to do, though, so she rolls her head to look at Puck upside-down, who’s eating another Milky Way, and says, “Pass me one of those.”

*

There are Everafters in New York City, of course. Sabrina sneaks out over the weekends, meets Puck’s brother. Gets in trouble. Finds out the Scarlet Hand is here, too. Tells her dad, hopes it’ll get them moved home. It doesn’t, it just gets her in a different kind of trouble. She doesn’t care, keeps sneaking out to get in the right kind of trouble, the kind that means she’s part of her family, still sort of connected to Puck.

In three years, when the barrier comes crumbling down, and the Everafters start trying, really and truly, to take over the world, it pays off. Because now nowhere is safe. And she wants to tell her dad she told him so, but she’s busy trying to watch the news that her parents won’t let her see and find out if her friends are safe and everything is loud and angry and dangerous and she tried to prepare but it wasn’t enough.

They still make her go to school. It’s stupid. None of this matters, and she tells them that over and over, but they make her go anyway, and when she’s proven right because there’s a lockdown on the third day since the Everafters declared war, she’s just angry about it.

She’s hiding in the bathroom with two other girls who got caught between classes, and the other two are crying, when noises come down the hall in their direction. Sabrina looks around for something she can use as a weapon. 

The door swings open.

Sabrina prepares herself for a fight.

She’s hit in the face before she can do anything, by a small projectile—a bullet? Since when do Everafters use guns? She’d have thought getting shot would hurt more.

She looks down. No blood on the ground. 

Just a green skittle.

She doesn’t have to look up to know who’s going to say “Hey, Grimm.” She doesn't know what's coming next, but as soon as she hears Puck's voice, she knows the can handle it. Together.

[lettrespromises]

#LettresPromises informs you : You have one notification. ──➤ 𝐘𝐎𝐔'𝐕𝐄 𝐆𝐎𝐓 𝐌𝐀𝐈𝐋!

─➤ @theastroooooworld​ 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐚 𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 : ❝oi oi oi nikki ♡! i hope you are well as always. can i have hc's for Tanaka, Ushijima and Bokuto (separately) ? how would they behave with their childhood best friend who supports them since their beginning in volleyball but with whom they gradually fall in love ? thanks !!je t'aime tant, prends soin de toi et des tiens 🧡🌅❞ ─➤ 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 : ❝my dearest cam,  forgive me for the terrible, terrible sense of never being on time but i’ve heard this letter comes at the right time (hopefully this letter will help a tiny bit while you’re healing.) je t’aime fort fort, prends soin de toi (et de ton tibia et de tes cervicales) et des tiens! sealed with a magic kiss to blow your pain away,  nikki.❞

──➤ 𝐋𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑'𝐒 𝐎𝐁𝐉𝐄𝐂𝐓 : Tanaka, Bokuto and Ushijima gradually fall in love with their childhood best friend. ─➤ 𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒 : mentions of a nose bleeding.

──➤ Tanaka Ryuunosuke sent you a letter, would you like to read it?

Despite his flamboyant sense of worship for Kiyoko, Tanaka does not know how to handle emotions, romantic ones, that is. Sure, he (alongside with Nishinoya) are willing to kiss each centimeter of concrete blessed by Kiyoko’s footsteps, but despite his burning passion, Tanaka is rendered into a stuttering mess when the attention is focused on him.

He has hidden and sometimes projected his blooming crushes for other people onto proves of love for Kiyoko, and in that sense, knowing he could solely focus his attention on her brought him a sense of security because he is so scared of the unknown, especially romantically-wise.

Hence why, whenever he would find himself appreciating someone who wasn’t Kiyoko a bit too much to his own liking, he would bury that feeling deep down and instead transform these hushed sentiments into demonstrations of love for his one and only goddess. 

However.

Sometimes, feelings tend to be a bit stronger when they are mixed with nostalgia, that is, childhood nostalgia. Truth be told, you, Tanaka and Noya were always found together... And often in the worst scenarios (just like that one time you and Ryuu were waiting for Nishinoya and you had to help Tanaka contain all the blood leaking from his nose at the sight of the bombshell accompanying Nishinoya’s grandfather.) 

Surely enough, Tanaka had always seen you like the equivalent of Nishinoya, meaning that he would confess every little secret locked in the back of his mind, even those including Kiyoko. 

Your presence was comforting, and he always considered you extra fuel to animate his fire whenever you would watch him during practice (and you were the first to throw an empty bottle straight to his head whenever he would throw his shirt off after scoring an impressive bottle.)

But in a very, very dramatic way, Kiyoko found herself become gradually set free of Tanaka’s romantic antics and devotion which led her to question the cause of all of this— despite her dislike for any kind of grandiose display of devotion, the fact Tanaka had started to stop giving her attention was a huge red flag regarding his state.

She hesitated to go talk to Nishinoya, but she was expecting to be met with no serious answer, and instead, just watch him drool during several minutes. 

She, thus, went to the next best person who would be able to comprehend this sudden switch in attitude: you, and your lifelong experience regarding Tanaka.

You were undoubtedly quizzical, but things took another turn when Tanaka himself showed up around the corner of the gym, and an uncharacteristic blush crept on his cheeks, Kiyoko took it as a clue to leave you alone.

“Is there anything you wanted to tell me, Ryuu? Are you sick or anything? You haven’t been, you know, following Ki—“

“I like you a whole lot. A lot. Like, a lot.” He confessed, his body was rigid but his eyes testified of all the love he had for you.

You couldn’t help but allow a soft giggle to break free from your lips, “does that mean you’re going to be worshipping me now?”

And as soon as the words died on your lips, his dropped on one knee, and delicately reached for your hand which he enveloped with his palms and soon smothered with love-infused pecks. “Anything for you, my beautiful divinity. I’ve been waiting for this day since we were kids, now I got to worship you everyday, the sunshine of my life.”

──➤ Bokuto Koutarou sent you a letter, would you like to read it?

Before Akaashi came in the picture, you’ve always been his pilar, his rock, his pivot, his safe person. Bokuto soon learned to identify you as the person he could go to if anything were to happen.

You knew firsthand how to handle his emo mode since you were kids, and as a child, Bokuto would make himself appear look sad on purpose just so you could focus your attention on him and smoother him with love and kind touches.

Years later, this side of his personality never faded away, but never did your calming antics, nor did you stop always keeping an eye out on him during practice.

Bokuto expressively asked you to be the manager of the team, he said it was to “give you the best seats in the house to admire the way of the ace”, but truthfully, you were the fuel to the fire burning like an inexorable inferno within him.

You and Akaashi completed one another perfectly to find a balance for Bokuto, but at times, when Bokuto would find himself being overwhelmed by sad thoughts on the court, Akaashi would always suggest him to look at you, sitting on the benches.

It had become a ritual, each time Bokuto felt nervous or tortured by his own emotions, his shining golden orbs would find your frame, and a smile on your end was enough to make him feel at peace again. And that, ever since Bokuto started playing volleyball.

One day, during training, Bokuto had ententered a severe streak of shots, and each time the ball slammed the ground loudly in victory, his eyes darted on your form to study your reaction. He started doing anything to impress you since that day, even the silliest things like carry all the water bottles for you until (inevitably) tripping on the ground.

But striking for your attention and validation over and over again also meant that his emo modes were going to be even more intense too.

As his palm slapped the surface of the ball into a diagonal strike, his body shifted in a straight position, thus transforming the shot into a straight line.

The whines of protest were already leaving his lips, and soon enough his entire body language testified of how his emotions got the best of him: his shoulders were slumped, the tips of his hair faced down, his brows were weakly furrowed. It was a crisis situation.

“Agaaaashehhh! Can you get me Y/N, pleaaaase? I feel like I’m gonna melt and freeze at the same time.” Bokuto pleaded, his golden orbs were glossy under the gathering of the salty pearls in the corner of his eyes.

Without wasting more time, Akaashi jogged to you, and quickly explained the situation with a hint of worry in his tone which was unsual for him.

Your palm brushed Bokuto’s back in a soothing manner, only to find yourself prisoner of his embrace as his forelimbs found shelter on the small of your back, the tip of his nose nestled in the crook of your neck.

“Y/NNNN, I can’t even do diagonal shots anymore... It’s, like, my body goes for diagonal but I keep on hitting straight lines, I feel so dumb and useless...” His words were accompanied by whines of discontent, clearly indicating that this emo situation was more alarming than the others.

Your palm rubbed invisible shapes on his back in a soothing manner, humming at his confessions, “I can’t do anything right, can’t hit diagonal shots, can’t be a good captain, can’t even confess to you that I’ve loved you since day one.”

An angel passed.

“Kou, did— were you serious?”

“Does that mean you don’t like me? ‘S fine, I swear.” He now had his state focused on you, eyes as glossy as ever, and it took you all the strength in the world not to soothe his pain away by smothering him with kisses.

“I like you too, Kou, as big as the sky.” You offered him a genuine smile, your palms having moved to cup his palms while your thumbs were brushing the skin of his cheeks.

The tips of his hair immediately quirked up, and his signature grin throned once more amongst his facial features : “Wooooah! As big as the sky? That’s so big, sunshine! Guess what? I love you as big as the court!”

Another giggle found its way past your lips, soon quieted by the way your planted a peck on his cheek, “That’s a lot, Kou, more than I could’ve ever hoped for.”

And as Bokuto cradles you in his embraces, he excitedly stares at Akaashi who has a hint of a smile on his face, jumping a bit over the excitement.

“Kou, I know you’re happy and all but it’s hard to keep up with your hug if you’re jumping all over the place.”

“My bad, sunshine, you just make me so happy, ya know?”

──➤ Ushijima Wakatoshi sent you a letter, would you like to read it?

Now, I have already stated that Ushijima is not emotionless, rather he decides whether or not something or someone is worthy of the reveal of his emotions. And only three things fit on this list: Tendou, volleyball and yourself.

You actually met Ushijima as a child at an art discovery class for children. Ushijima had isolated himself from the rest of the children because the remarks of his mother were still ringing loud and clear in his head, but when you approached him and complimented how unique of an approach his left hand offered, he was over the moon (not that he showed it though.)

Much like Bokuto, Toshi is the kind of person to associate someone as his safe person, someone he can go to if needed, or at least feel their presence for reassurance. Needless to say, you are this person to Wakatoshi, always have been since the first doodles you’ve shared together.

In his case, Tendou actually pushed you to be the manager of the team, remarking that your presence would probably motivate Ushijima even more and make him more grounded if he had someone to hold on to during games.

To this day, you’ve always stayed late after practice and watched over Wakatoshi, spike after spike, serve after serve, until his fingers were bleeding and the moonshine outshone the neons of the gym.

You always carried medical tape with you, because you knew he was always bound to push behind his limits, only because he knew that you’d always be there for him, which happened to be true.

Now, now. Wakatoshi does know what feelings are, he knows how to recognize them kinesthetisically and tends to do mental notes of how people manifest their own emotions. Thus, he starts to notice the way his stomach creates knots whenever you’re in the same vicinity.

After training, Tendou finds him reading ads in the latest Jump edition, but Ushijima is quick to interrogate him : “Ah, an ad for plant medicine. Do you reckon this would help my stomach ache, Tendou?”

Tendou blinks once, then twice “Mhm, ‘depends on what kind of stomach ache we’re talking about here, Wakatoshi-kun.”

“It‘s odd. It’s not so much painful but it always happens when Y/N is near me.”

Tendou wipes an inexistent tear away in a dramatic manner, “Toshi-kun, you’re not sick at all, you’re in love.”

Since this sudden realization, Wakatoshi tends to avoid you because he believes that despite the sweet nature of this feeling, this stomach ache is taking a bit too much space to his liking.

He realizes soon, however, that the longer he waits, the worse it becomes.

After practice, and in an ever so natural manner, Ushijima grabs your wrist, and sends a glare to the rest of the team in order to silently tell them to leave the gym now that practice is over.

“Y/N, I’m sorry for taking some of your time so suddenly, I hope I did not startle you.” His grip on your wrist fades away slowly, and you offer him a hint of a smile.

“Don’t worry, Toshi, you’re all good.”

“I requested your presence because it seems I have developed feelings for you.”

A vivid blush colors the apples of your cheeks, your mouth is set agape for a few agonizing seconds: “You think or you know?”

“I don’t know.” He replies, and there’s a hint of disappointment in himself at the lack of retrospection on his end.

“Well, let me help you then.” Your palm is now enveloping his cheek in a loving hold, whilst your lips plant a lingering kiss on his opposite cheek, leaving Wakatoshi at loss for words.

“I, um, I’m positive now. I truly have feelings for you.”

[fanficwriter013]

The Tower: The Queen of Asgard - 16

The Tower: The Queen of Asgard An Avengers Fanfic

Series Masterlist PREVIOUS //

Pairing:  Avengers x OFC, Bruce Banner x Bucky Barnes x Clint Barton x Wanda Maximoff x Steve Rogers x Natasha Romanoff x Tony Stark x Thor x Sam Wilson x OFC (Elly Cooper)

Word Count: 3613

Warnings: 

Synopsis: The twins are now three and while the Avengers know that Clint and Thor are the biological father’s none of them know or care which blond, blue-eyed baby is related to which man.  When Riley gets the power to control wind and it becomes evident that she is the heir to the Asgardian throne, Elly, Steve, Thor, and Tony take the twins to Asgard to train her.

Not every Asgardian is happy with their king’s choice of consort, nor the impurity of the heir’s blood.  While others expect Thor to make things more official.  What’s clear is, the role of Queen of Asgard is not easily filled.

Author’s Note:  Written with @avengerscompound​ (insert witty comment here.)

Chapter 16: Reunited

Our moment of relaxed contentment didn’t last too long.  By the end of the same day, Thor had come clean about the Fenestare, which had led to a long argument about whether it was okay to even participate in a battle to the death, how dangerous it was, and how it put the rest of us at risk too.

Tony wanted to leave.  Even the tiniest risk to the kids’ safety and he was on edge.  And so far there had been a lot of those.  Steve wasn’t so sure if we should leave.  If Thor was so determined to do this, he wanted to be there to support him.  He was very vocal about the fact that he did not think Thor should do it on moral terms.

Nothing was changing Thor’s mind though, so we spent the following day, highly strung as he prepared for the fight.  Tony dragged Steve to the lab to finish the bots and Thor had made me and the kids follow him around all day.  They were tired and cranky as we went back to his royal chambers.  Pietro was curled up in my arms and Riley was throwing herself around in Thor’s rather dramatically when Sif stormed in.

“Why was I informed, immediately upon arrival that there is going to be a Fenestare?”  She asked, squaring up to Thor and poking him in the chest.  “It’s like this place doesn’t function when I’m not here.”

I couldn’t even pretend I cared about what Sif had to say about the Fenestare.  I was too excited she was back.  If she was back it meant the others might be here too.  “Did you bring them?”

“Yes,” Sif said.  “I took them to your chambers.  They are settling in.”

I whined and looked at Thor.  He handed me Riley and pressed a kiss to my forehead.  “Volstagg, could you please escort the Lady Elise to the others.”

“Of course,”  Volstagg said and gestured to the door.

“And I will stay here and attempt to slap some sense into our King,” Sif said.

I followed Volstagg down to our chambers carrying both the kids and when I stepped inside I found them all looking high strung and pacing the room.

“You’re going to need to explain what’s going on fast,” Wanda said.  “I’m starting to lose them.”

“Hey, hey, hey,”  I said putting the kids down.  They both immediately started bouncing and jogging on the spot like they wanted to run to the rest of their family but couldn’t decide who they should run to first.  “Why do you guys always have to go so negative?”

“Because an alien shows up, demands we all come here, and the mind-reader immediately jumps on board,” Natasha said folding her arms in front of her.  “That’s suspicious.”

“Can one of you indicate to your kids to come to them, they’re about to explode,” I said.  “The rest of you take a seat.”

“Who wants Daj?”  Wanda asked crouching down and opening her arms.  Riley charged over to her and slammed into her.  I crouched and pointed to Clint and Pietro ran over to him and immediately started scaling him.

Almost everyone took a seat in the couches.  Bucky, Natasha, and Bruce couldn’t seem to settle though, and the three of them kept pacing the room.

“Okay… so, there’s been a little descension here that Thor was unaware of the extent of.  A section of his people believe he was too young for the job, but originally there was no other choice but him or Loki and he was the preference.  So they would make him jump through hoops and he’d do it.  Only now a faction claiming there are two older siblings.  They believe that the firstborn son should be ruling and not Thor and are causing some trouble.  A few things have happened.”  I explained as I sat forward on the couch.

“There’s a what?”  Natasha asked.

“Brother.  Though there has been no actual sign of him.  There is a claim he was kidnapped and raised by the rulers of one of the other realms in the hope to put him in charge of Asgard and then they would rule the nine realms.”  I answered.

“You said some things happened?”  Bucky asked.  He was flexing his metal hand and looked as close to being the soldier as I’d seen him in a long time.

“There was an attempt to kidnap and murder Riley and I,” I said.  “A guard and a woman from that other realm attacked us.”

“And where are they now?”  Bucky asked in a completely flat and rather terrifying tone.

“In prison.  Loki has been dealing with them.”

“I want to see them.” Bucky seethed looking at the door.

“That is not a good idea,” Loki said, coming into the room followed by Fandral.

“It’s also not why you’re here,”  I added.

Bucky wheeled back to me.  “What?  There’s more?”

“Yeah,” I said with a nod.  “It’s about the hoops he’s having to jump.  Right now he’s preparing for a fight to the death he has to participate in.  Though that is also not why you’re here.  When we got here, we were almost forced to … well, marry him.  He has to be bonded with someone to rule if he has a child.  Without telling him or us they were going to force the ceremony.  He managed to get them to give us two weeks.  I couldn’t do it without you guys at least knowing about it.  But… and I guess I’m proposing for him right now.  He’d like it to be all of you.”

“A what?”  Natasha asked.  “And a what?”

“Deathmatch.  Wedding.”  I said counting them off on my fingers. “And -”  I took a breath and huffed, blowing my hair off my brow.  “- the thing about the wedding is… it will mean our life expectancies change.  They will all be pulled in line with Thor’s.”

“Can you boil that down just a wee bit for my dumb brain?”  Clint asked as he cuddled with Pietro.

“The ceremony is called bonding.  It doesn’t change the rules of the relationship.  It just means we are bonded to Thor.  And each other.  We will have a special connection.  For those of us like me who are going to get the usual 78 years most likely, we will now get closer to 5000.  For Bucky, Steve, maybe you B, and you Nat.  You’ll live significantly less.  Plus Thor will be promised to you.  You won’t ever have to worry about being alone.  So… we don’t all have to do it.  But he has to do it with someone.  If you don’t want to that’s okay, but we all need to agree on who does and if that’s okay.”

“Is there a place I can go to punch things?”  Bucky asked in a low voice.

I looked over at Loki, but Volstagg stepped forward.  “Let me take you to the training arena.”  He said.  “Is there anyone else that would like to work out their tension?”

Natasha raised her hand.  Volstagg indicated to the door with his ax and the three of them headed out together.

Sam moved over and wrapped his arm around me and I melted into him.  “I missed you guys.”

“How have you been doing, sweetie?”  Wanda asked rubbing my leg.

“I guess you could say I’ve been a little bit stressed,” I said.

Sam rubbed my arm and kissed the top of my head.  “That’s totally understandable, princess.”  He said.  “You’re safe and we’re all here.”

“What about you, my darlings?  Have you been having fun?”  Wanda asked the kids.

“Uncle Woki has a big wibwawy,” Pietro answered.

“Yeah?  How big?”  Clint asked.

Pietro stretched his arms up over his head.  “Is big.  So many.”

“Piet, you should tell daddy about what Fandral has been teaching you,” I said.

Pietro stood up on Clint’s thighs and started jumping.  “Daddy!  Daddy!”  He said excitedly and then started babbling so fast that it was hard to make out any words.

“Buddy.  Buddy, slow down.”  Clint said, holding Pietro’s hands.

“Dere’s a pony, daddy.  I rided da pony.”  He squealed.

“Oh, really?”  Clint asked.

“Fandral was teaching him to ride while Thor taught Riley how to use her powers,” I explained.

“That sounds like a lot of fun, buddy,” Clint said, and Pietro slammed himself against him and nuzzled into his neck.  “So… the immortality thing.”

“I don’t know what to do.  I worry about him.”  I said poking Pietro.

“Well, maybe he falls in love with an Asgardian,” Clint said.  “Or maybe Earth Science can cure diseases.”

“Or maybe we have to watch him age and then die and we’ll just be stuck like this,” I said, frowning.

“Well, yeah,” Clint said and kissed the top of Pietro’s head.  “I dunno.  Still don’t really see it as a problem.”

“You want to do it?”  I asked.  “Just like that?”

“Why not?”

“I don’t know,” I said, furrowing my brow.  “It’s huge.  It means a lot.”

“Why don’t you talk us through it, honey?”  Sam asked.

“We’ll have to watch everyone we know die.  That means probably Piet.  Hill, Coulson, Scott, Rhodey, Clarke.”  I said.  “It means that all the shit we deal with on Earth could get worse because we will always just be there.  We might stop even being able to relate to people or form proper bonds with them.  They might start thinking we’re gods too.”

“Where did that fear even come from?”  Sam asked.

“I don’t know.  Anne Rice?”

Sam chuckled and Clint shook his head.  “So, fiction?  Have you tried actually talking to someone who has experience with that kind of thing?”  Clint asked.

“What like Thor?  The god of thunder?”  I snarked.

“Well, what about that guy?”  Clint asked, gesturing to Fandral.

“I’m afraid I’m not a good example,” Fandral said with a small bow.  “I have lived a normal life for what is expected on Asgard.  I have seen my elders die but I haven’t had to outlive any of my peers.  At least not in terms of watching them grow old.  I’ve lost friends in battle.”

“Oh,” Clint said.

“There is a chance that young Loki here may outlive us all.  The stories say there are celestials who existed before existence.  There is only one known case of their death and the skull is now the homeworld of many people.  Then came the All fathers.  The Ice Giants came with them.  They were violent and burned a path through the universe before them.  Then Odin was born of the Allfathers.  That was when the universe began to settle.  Other worlds grew and their own life forms formed with their own life spans.  But here on Asgard we live thousands of years and are revered as gods.”

“Okay, but would you choose to outlive some people by millennia if you could?”  Clint asked.

Fandral approached us and took a seat next to Loki. “That seems inevitable.  People die in war.  I outlived the Valkyrie.  My parents.”

“The what?”  Clint asked.

“Valkyrie?  The warrior women?”  Fandral asked with a mixture of shock and disbelief.  “You haven't heard of them?”  When Clint shook his head, Fandral sat up straight and clapped his hands.  “A story for the little prince and princess.  Once upon a time, Odin was stretching his rule over the Nine Realms.  There was much fighting within them and he wished to restore peace and order.  He took with him an army of women who rode upon winged horses.  They were the most formidable army in all the realms.  All who they went up against fell.  Until one day there was a great battle and they were all slain.”  He explained.   “I was but a child when they existed.”  He leaned over and poked Pietro in the stomach.  “Your father wished to be a Valkyrie when he grew up.”

“You get me a horsie wif wings?”  Pietro asked.

Fandral chuckled.  “That might be possible, little prince.  But first, we learn on the non-winged kind.”

“Are they a different species?”  Clint asked.

“That’s right,”  Fandral said with a nod.  “Longer lived and stronger than the typical horse on Asgard, but no match for Odin’s former steed.”

Clint furrowed his brow like he was mulling over the story.  “Why would wings make them live longer?”

I snorted.  “Correlation, not causation, Clint.”

“If I were to guess, I would say it was because the magic runs deeper through them,”  Fandral added and turned to Loki.  “What do you think, dear?”

“I think it would be a shame if I had to put a knife into your eye,” Loki said rolling his eyes and picking at his nails.  “I just cleaned my blades.”

Fandral chuckled and poked Pietro in the belly.  “Now, now.  Your uncle is always so violent.”

Pietro giggled and wiggled in Clint’s lap.

“Where are the boys?”  Sam asked.

“Thor is being chewed out by Sif.  I think Steve and Tony are in the lab.”  I said.

Like I had summoned him, the door opened and Thor came in with Sif, followed by the chef and his carts of food.

“Woah, magic,”  I said as Riley wriggled out from Wanda’s arms and ran over to the chef.

Riley bounced on her feet as she watched the chef start sorting things out for everyone.  There was a lot more food than previously, but then there were also a lot more of us.

As he was setting up, Steve, Tony, and Hogun came in.

“Oh, hey, the rest of them,” Sam said.

“Where’s Bucky and Nat?”  Steve asked, looking around.

“Punching stuff,” Clint answered.

“You should give everyone their gifts,” I said as Steve scowled.

“Sure,” Tony said and went into the bedroom to find the bag.

“Sif, did you talk Thor out of it?”  I asked.

“I’m afraid not, my lady,” she said.  “I did try.”

Tony returned with the bag and pulled out the bow.  “This is for you, Legolas.”

Clint took it and his eyes went wide.  “It’s so light.  Feels like I’m holding a pencil.”

“It is like mine,” Sif said.  “It has a perfect balance and tension.  You will like it.”

Clint tested the balance and I took the bag off Tony and dug around in it pulling out the vambrace.  “I picked these for you,” I said giving them to Sam.

He took them and made a soft, pleased sound.  “These are nice.”  He said turning them over.

“I thought they’d match your wings if you wanted to wear them. Or they’re just pretty.  So you can put them on a shelf to look at.”  I said.

“They’re perfect.  Thank you, princess.”  He said and pulled me close nipping at my neck.

I giggled and leaned into him, passing the bag back to Tony.  He went back and pulled out the gift for Bruce and gave them to him pulling him into his arms and kissing him softly before he pressed the decorative case into Bruce’s hands.

Bruce opened them and smiled for the first time since I’d seen him here.  “These look interesting.”

“Thought you’d like them, Bear,” Tony said and nuzzled at Bruce’s neck.

Steve took the bag off Tony and took out Natasha and Bucky’s gifts and put them on a shelf out of the kids’ reach before bringing the whole bag over and giving it to Wanda.  “Everything else in there is for you, darling.”  He said.

Wanda looked at him suspiciously and then opened the bag and looked inside.  “Why is it so big?”

“Some weird magic,” Steve said.

She reached in and brought out a handful of rings, necklaces, and bracelets.  “There’s so much.”  She said, beginning to separate each piece.

“The lady who made them wanted you to have all of them.  There is a lot more in there.”  Steve said, leaning down and pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

“It’s all so beautiful,” Wanda said, smiling.  “Thank you.”

Steve gave her shoulder a squeeze.  “You’re very welcome.”

“Lunch is served.”  The chef said.

“Is good,” Riley said from her spot at the table.  A plate was already in front of her and her mouth was completely full.

“How’d you get food, bug?”  Clint asked getting up with Pietro on his hip.

Riley pointed at the chef with a piece of food she was holding in her fist.  “Dis guy.”

“I did hand her a plate.”  The chef said.  “Did I overstep, my lord?”

“Is good,” Riley said.  “You my fwiend.”

The chef chuckled.  “Thank you, princess.  You’re my friend too.”

“I assure you, Clinton.  Magnus has been working for the throne since I was a small boy.  I trust him completely.”

“Even with what happened?”  Clint asked.

“Yes.  Magnus is loyal to us.”  He said.  “And a member of our household.”

Magnus bowed and took leave of the room as everyone got up and helped themselves to food.  Pietro climbed up onto Clint’s head and ate things that were passed up to him as Clint sat at the table with Steve, Sam, Tony, and Bruce.  Wanda and I ate at the couch with Loki while Thor seemed to pace and pick at things.

“Come here, human cat.  Curl back up with me.”  Wanda said, shifting so she could eat with me tucked into her side.

I curled in and picked at the food on my plate.  “What would the bonding ceremony be like?  What can we expect?”  Wanda asked.

“Oh, we get powers.  But we don’t know what they’ll be until it’s happened.”  I said.

“I’ll have extra powers?  Like lightning?”  Wanda asked.

“They will be a reflection of both who you are and how you see yourself in your family,” Loki explained.  “For example, someone who was very protective of their family might be able to create a shield that encompasses them.”

“Oh.  I see.  I wonder what that would mean for each of us.”  Wanda said.

Loki shrugged.  “Hopefully it renders this one mute.”  He said gesturing to me.

I tried to stifle a laugh, ended up snorting and then broke down into peals of silent giggles.

Loki did his best to ignore me completely.  “The ceremony itself involves a literal binding.  A cord will be used to bind you to each other.  For the number of you, I imagine it will look like a large web.  Magic will be passed through it and you will take a sort of vision quest.  In it, you will find where you belong within the relationship and your family.  If the bonds are true and good, then you will be granted your new gift.”

“Wow. Okay.”  Wanda said and took a drink as she seemed to mull over Loki’s words.

“Does she always eat like this?”  Loki asked waving her hand vaguely at Riley.

I looked over and saw Riley completely covered in food and shoveling more into her mouth.  “Oh, yes.  She’s a hungry beast, aren’t you bug?”

She roared in response which made Wanda start giggling.

“Who raised this child to act like this?”  Bruce asked.

“We did?”  I said with a shrug.

“I think she needs to be recalibrated.”  Sam joked.

“Daddy,” Riley said, sternly.

“Oh.  You asked for it now.”  Sam said, getting up.

“No, daddy!”  She squealed.

“Yes, bug.”  He said, grabbing her around the waist and flipping her upside down.

She flailed and squealed, kicking her legs excitedly.  A soft wind began to swirl around the room.

“Just a few more minutes.”  Sam teased.  “You’re almost fixed.”

“Riley, control that wind, please,” Thor said.  She continued kicking and squealing but the wind died right off.

“Huh,”  Sam said, flipping her back over and putting her down.

“Again, daddy!”  She squealed, jumping up and down.

“She got control of it after only a couple of days?”  Sam asked.

Thor shook his head as Riley continued to jump up and down, tugging on Sam’s shirt.  “Only sometimes.  It’s important to remind her when it’s out of her control though.”

Sam caught her midjump and spun her upside down again.  She squealed in delight.   It was such a pure noise and she was so happy.  As loud as it was with everyone here I felt at peace.  Even Bruce seemed to have started to relax a little.  The only stand out person, who was not beginning to calm was Thor.  Time was ticking down to the Fenestare, and the stress of it seemed to be seeping out of his pored.

“Thor, are you okay?”  I asked.

“As I can be.”  He said in a strained tone.

“Do you want to join Wanda and I for cuddles?”  I asked.

“Yes.  I would most appreciate that.”  He said moving over to us.

“You know he is as heavy as a horse right?”  Loki asked.

“I have been under him many times, yes.”  I deadpanned as I opened my arms and Thor collapsed down into them.

Loki shook his head.  “I don’t know what I expected to happen when I said that.”  He said.  “I am old enough to know better.”

“You did kind of walk into it.”  I agreed as I began to caress Thor’s hair and neck.

Riley came over and climbed up on Thor, draping herself over him like a cat and closing her eyes.

“Do you think she understands what’s happening?”  Sam asked.

“I don’t know,” I said.

“I hope she doesn’t,” Bruce said, his voice slightly strained.

Thor shifted and closed his eyes a little, and it wasn’t long before both father and daughter were snoring lightly in the pile on my lap.

// NEXT

[fanficshiddles]

Instincts, Chapter 44

There is violence in this chapter! 

Layla felt dread fill her entire body. Her stomach twisted with fear and she felt like she was going to throw up.

Loki stepped between Layla and the group that had just come through the gate. He let out a snarl as he eyed up Odin.

The guards noticed Loki’s change in demeanour and they approached Odin, spears at the ready and trapped Odin in a circle. Odin stopped walking and put his hands up in defence. Thor looked confused as he looked around at all the guards that were ready to attack his father.

Some of the pack turned into their wolf forms, snarling and snapping in Odin’s direction.

‘What is he doing here?’ Loki demanded as he walked closer, glaring at Thor.

‘He wanted to help and make amends, brother. He means no harm.’ Thor said calmly as he looked at Loki, pleadingly.

‘He is not welcome here.’ Loki hissed as he glared at Odin.

‘Then I shall leave. He doesn’t want to start anything, Loki. He wants to help and make up for his previous actions.’ Thor tried again as he put his hand onto Loki’s shoulder.

‘Why didn’t you tell us he was coming too?’ Loki’s nostrils were flaring with anger.

‘I didn’t think it was necessary. He’s your father.’

‘No. He was never my father.’ Loki snapped.

‘Well, I am not staying if you don’t allow him to stay as well.’ Thor said as he folded his arms over his chest.

Loki clenched his jaw in anger. He looked round to Rudolf, whom motioned for him to go speak privately. So he did.

‘We could always set up extra guards at his door, to make sure he doesn’t do anything.’ Rudolf suggested to Loki quietly.

Loki nodded in thought. Then he turned to face the others again.

‘Fine. But there will be five guards following him everywhere and on guard outside of his chambers.’ Loki said firmly as he looked to Odin again, who still said nothing.

Thor nodded in agreement.

Loki picked five of the strongest guards to stick to Odin like glue. He was taken straight to his chambers, while Loki took Thor for a chat.

‘Will you take Layla back to our quarters please?’ Loki asked Rafal, who nodded.

Layla was feeling really uneasy with the entire situation. Odin had been in her nightmares, and it seemed that he had been the cause of all the destruction. She really wasn’t comfortable having Odin on the realm, never mind in her home.

‘Can we have extra guards, especially around Eva, please?’ Layla asked Rudolf, who passed on the orders to one of the guards.

‘I don’t know if Loki mentioned to you, but I had a nightmare last night…’

'Yes, he did tell me about it. I feel it is perhaps a sign, which is why I think it’s a good move for Odin to be under extra scrutiny. At least we can keep an eye on him.’ Rudolf said as they entered Layla’s quarters.

'I’m really scared. What if he is plotting something?’ Layla said, worriedly.

Rudolf didn’t like seeing any omega upset and scared, more so Layla. She was family to him. It hurt his heart to see her so upset.

'If he is, we will find out. We, especially Loki, won’t let anything happen to you or Eva. We promise.’ Rudolf said as he pulled Layla into a hug.

'Thank you.’ She said quietly as she hugged him back, already starting to feel a little bit better.

'Let’s go see how Eva and Freya are doing.’ Rudolf chuckled.

'Why did Odin step down?’ Loki asked Thor as they sat down for a drink together.

'Not long after you left, he fell into the Odin-sleep. I took over as King. I put a stop to the hunt for you. I explained to the people of Asgard that you were all no threat to us. I also did some research’

Loki scoffed at the thought of Thor in the library.

'Shut up.’ Thor laughed and playfully punched Loki on his shoulder. 'I read more about your true heritage and what happened. I spoke to mother as well and she told me the truth. When father woke up, he offered me the throne permanently. I accepted, of course. Then when Armund came to visit, we told everyone your story and how you were to make a treaty with us. Father said he wanted to come as well, to support you. To make up for what he should have done all those years ago. I believe he does want to help you, Loki.’

'I’m not so sure. Layla had a really bad nightmare last night. She’s never one for having bad dreams, this was bad. She saw his face and there was death and blood everywhere in the city. I don’t trust him, Thor.’ Loki said with a sigh.

‘It just sounds like a bad dream, brother. There are so many of us here, there’s no way that father would even think of trying anything.’ Thor tried to assure Loki, but Loki wasn’t so sure.

So he decided to go and speak to Odin, to see what he had to say for himself…

‘You have me locked up in my chambers like I’m a prisoner.’ Odin said when Loki walked in.

‘Well, you aren’t far from it. You expect me to trust you like nothing has happened?’ Loki sneered as he walked back and fore on front of Odin, who was sat on a chair by the fire place.

‘I understand you must still be angry. But I only did what’

‘What you thought was best for Asgard. Yes. You’ve only said that a million times. I’ve heard it all before, All father. Or should I say, Odin. Now that you’ve stepped down from the throne. What happened, has the guilt become too much? Thor over powered you? What was it?’ Loki snarled.

‘I decided that it was time for a fresh start.’ Odin said simply.

‘Bullshit. You would never just step down without a reason. What was it? Hmm? TELL ME!’ Loki roared at Odin as he put his hands onto the arms of the chair he was sat on and got right in his face, slightly startling Odin.

Odin was still wary of Loki, he knew of his strength and power after all. Especially in his wolf form.

‘The scene that you and the other wolves caused, brought panic and despair to the city. It was Thor who was able to calm them down, explained about the history. They looked to him for guidance and reassurance. I realised that he was what Asgard needed, not me. In your own words and Thor’s too, I am behind on the times. I still live in the past. You’ve shown me that. I need to move on, let Thor be the great King that I know he can be. And I want to make things right with you… I was a bad father, I am not denying that anymore. I do not ask for forgiveness for what I did to you, I know it could never happen. However, I do ask that you let me help save you from these beasts that threaten your realm.’ Odin said calmly and seriously.

Loki stepped back and looked at Odin suspiciously. He gave a good speech, it seemed heartfelt too. But Loki still wasn’t sure whether he could be trusted or not. He was normally good at reading people, especially if they were lying. But with Odin, he was never sure. He had never been able to tell for sure with him.

So Loki never answered him back. He just sighed and left the chambers. Leaving Odin on his own, to his thoughts.

Over the following few days, Odin was kept a close eye on by some guards. But Layla still wasn’t happy.

Each night she had a nightmare, similar to the first one. Odin being the main point of the nightmares. It unnerved her to no end and she didn’t trust him at all.

‘Shh, it’s alright my love. It was another nightmare. You’re safe.’ Loki cooed softly as he held Layla in his arms.

She was shaking and crying again as she buried her face into his chest. He held her tightly until she calmed down, then it took a while for her to fall asleep again as she had done the last few nights.

That following morning, Layla was really on edge. Loki noticed she was very jumpy and not herself, at all.

‘Darling, you’re still thinking about your nightmares?’ Loki asked as he wrapped his arms around his little omega from behind.

‘Last night was the worst one. It felt so much more real.’ Layla said shakily.

‘It was just a nightmare, love. I’ve got you.’ Loki kissed the top of her head.

Layla was in the gardens playing with Eva under a large oak tree. But she stopped as she heard someone coming. It was Thor, Loki and Odin. She jumped on front of Eva and her hackles went up as they came into view.

She was glaring daggers at Odin, who didn’t fail to notice. He smiled at her, but that only made her even more uneasy as her lips curled in a small snarl. Odin still wasn’t used to seeing so many wolves around.

‘Why don’t you and Odin go to the hall for lunch? I’ll see you later.’ Loki said to Thor.

Thor nodded and he went with Odin back inside, a few guards followed behind them. Still keeping a close eye on Odin.

Loki walked over to the white wolf and he reached out to stroke her muzzle.

‘He wouldn’t do anything with us around, love. I know he’s stupid, but he’s not that stupid.’ Loki chuckled.

I don’t trust him. Layla growled.

Eva came bounding out from underneath Layla and pounced up at Loki, making him laugh.

Daddy. Where have you been all morning? Eva asked as she mouthed at his hand.

‘I was working, sweetheart. Have you been good for your mum?’ Loki crouched down and rubbed at their young wolf’s ears.

Of course. Can we all go for a run? I want to show you my hunting skills that Dennis taught me! Eva said excitedly as she play bowed and then pounced onto a rock.

Layla looked at Loki with unease.

Is it safe? She asked him.

‘Of course. I’ll go and get Rudolf and Dennis to join us as well.’ Loki smiled reassuringly at Layla, gave her a quick scratch under her chin and then he went to find the others.

Yayyyyyy! Eva shouted excitedly as she jumped around in circles with excitement, making Layla roll her eyes.

Normally she would be just as excited as Eva was, sometimes more so. But having Odin here and with her nightmares was just making her really uneasy all the time and scared. She felt super protective over Eva, more so since she started being able to communicate with them. Knowing that Eva saw them as their parents, just like they saw her as their daughter.

Loki didn’t take long to find Rudolf and Dennis. Then they turned into their wolf forms too and all five of them headed out towards the forest.

Eva was the first to show off her hunting skills. She managed to catch a hare. Loki and Layla were so proud of her.

The adults all caught some bigger pray. Eva kept catching small hares and even a few unsuspecting birds.

The small pack had went for a rest by the river, to get a drink and cool off with a swim.

Eva swam across the river and climbed out at the other side. She shook herself off and was about to turn around to face the others who were still in the river, when suddenly Layla let out a large growl and leapt over the top of her.

Eva was confused and scared as Layla snarled and barked at the bushes not far from Eva. Loki and the others were quick to join Layla, snarling and poised to attack too.

That’s when two hybrids jumped out of the bushes and ran straight for the pack.

Eva cowered down on the ground behind her mum, terrified as the three Alpha wolves attacked the hybrids. Dennis and Rudolf were attacking one of them, but they were both knocked down by the hybrid. While they were momentarily on the ground, the hybrid went for Eva.

But Layla’s instincts kicked in and she attacked the deranged hybrid. She went straight for the neck and bit down as hard as she possibly could. When she felt the dog go limp, she started to thrash her head back and fore as she snarled viciously, the larger wolf was being thrown around like it was a feather. The hybrid yelped in agony as Layla then tossed it to the ground.

Rudolf and Dennis were stood in shock, watching Layla attack the hybrid.

It was badly injured and couldn’t move. Blood was pouring from the wound on its neck as it tried to get up and move. But Layla didn’t allow it to. She jumped on top of it and used her claws to slash at its face. She was so angry, she was just seeing red.

The other hybrid that was in Loki’s clutches saw its friend being mauled to death by Layla. So it quickly dodged Loki’s next attack and ran away, howling to alert the others.

You think you have won… We will get you and your little traitor cub… This is only the start. The hybrid coughed out before Layla killed him.